Therapist profile
Shirley Butler, LCSW
Montana
Montana LCSW - Anger and Trauma
Continue with ShirleyKey details
- CredentialsLCSW
- LicenseLCSW, Montana / BBH-LCSW-LIC-815
- NPI1619151669
- Experience23 years
- LanguagesEnglish
- LocationMontana
About
- CBT strategies
- DBT skills
- EMDR for trauma
About Shirley
Shirley Butler is a Montana Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with 23 years of experience in mental health. She has worked in community mental health and Tribal Behavioral Health and has run a private practice since 2013. Her experience includes crisis on-call work and in-office therapy, and she has lived and worked across different cultures.
Shirley helps people with stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, depression, anger, relationship and family concerns, parenting, grief, career issues, bipolar disorder, and coping with life changes. She lists additional focus areas such as abandonment, codependency, commitment issues, communication problems, forgiveness, post-traumatic stress, self-love, and women's issues. Sessions are conducted in English.
Her background includes a Bachelor in Human Services Rehabilitation from Salish Kootenai College and a Master of Social Work from Walla Walla University. She completed the required supervised clinical hours before obtaining her clinical license. That long path informs how she structures care and listens to client concerns.
Shirley uses a mix of practical approaches. She mentions Attachment-Based work, Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT). She also reports experience with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) for trauma-related concerns.
Her style centers on building rapport and a collaborative treatment plan. She emphasizes listening to each person’s story and working together to decide what to focus on. Prospective clients are asked to use the platform’s matching steps to schedule a first session.
How sessions work
How Shirley’s approaches work in online sessions
Shirley uses Attachment-Based Therapy to look at how early relationships shape current reactions. This can help when anger or distress feels tied to trust, closeness, or relationship patterns. Client-Centered Therapy is also part of her work - it focuses on the person’s own priorities and uses listening and reflection to guide progress. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) appears in her approach as a way to identify patterns of thought and behavior and practice concrete alternatives for stress, anger, and anxiety.Choosing the right approach is a shared process. Shirley plans treatment collaboratively, listening to client goals and preferences and adjusting methods as needed. She frames problem areas as things to examine together rather than fixed labels, and she uses the first sessions to agree on what to try and how to measure progress.
The platform’s matching steps are the starting point for scheduling and learning which session formats are currently offered. Confirm the available session options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into a workday, allow for shorter check-ins when needed, and reduce travel time. They also let people continue care with a licensed professional even if they live far from Shirley’s Montana base.
Areas of focus
Areas of expertise
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
23+ years
Listed in
Montana
Languages
English
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does she address?
She works with stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, depression, anger, relationship and family concerns, parenting, grief, career difficulties, bipolar disorder, and related focus areas like abandonment and codependency.
What is her approach in sessions?
Her approach is collaborative and client-centered. She emphasizes building rapport, listening to a person’s story, and creating a treatment plan together.
How much clinical experience does she have?
She has 23 years of experience working in community mental health, Tribal Behavioral Health, crisis on-call roles, and private practice since 2013.
What credential does she hold and where is she based?
She is a Montana LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker) and practices from Montana.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can people outside the US work with her?
International clients are accepted; check the matching process for any regional details before scheduling.
How does payment and cost work?
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I start a first session?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and schedule your first session through the platform.
Details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. A license can be checked with the state board.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If anyone is unsafe, use the crisis numbers.